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A Short Story about a Long Life


The man was totally depressed.

He was standing by the side of the road speaking through the open window of my car. His wife had left him. He had no job. Each day was a burden, and worse yet, he was a burden to the world. In his words, he was "totally useless."

I tried to cheer him up with some words of hope, but he was firm in his belief. I left him with some optimistic thought and darted into a U-turn, happy to go on to something more cheerful.

Suddenly he screamed, "Stop!" I slammed on the brakes just in time to see an extremely fast moving car whiz by. I said to him: "If you hadn't called out, I would have been dead now. A few seconds ago you felt useless without purpose, and now you have saved my life! From this moment on, every good deed I do will also be credited to your account." His face lit up, as the many months of depression fell away.

There is a dawn, and even the darkest nights do pass. No one knows what the next moment holds and to deny hope is to deny the constantly demonstrated fact that, "This too will pass."

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By Gutman Locks   More articles...  |   RSS Listing of Newest Articles by this Author
Excerpted from There is One by Gutman Locks.
About the artist: Sarah Kranz has been illustrating magazines, webzines and books (including five children’s books) since graduating from the Istituto Europeo di Design, Milan, in 1996. Her clients have included The New York Times and Money Marketing Magazine of London

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Reader Comments
Latest Comments:
Posted: July 28, 2010
to anonymous from Newton
You are able to openly discuss your depression. That itself seems to be a blessing. If you have a way of getting your message out to others that are depressed but cannot even get themselves to discuss it openly and with honesty, then you will be achieving a lot. It might even help you to get out of the dark tunnel which you are currently in.
Posted By Dovid, Dallas

Posted: July 27, 2010
Amen
This is all we all need at one time or other.Thank you very much . God bless you.
Posted By Miss Mariam kaiser

Posted: July 27, 2010
Much required spiritual medicine
Excellent narration. Reasserts the fact that nothing is permanent. Beyond everything is the ultimate truth of omnipresent divine presence and blessings which we miss out in daily grind of life.
Posted By Dr. Moses Kolet, Thane, India

Posted: July 26, 2010
Facing Depression
I am currently in the midst of a deep and dark depression. I appreciate this article and pray that I also find a way out of my darkness. I know G-d has a plan for me and look forward to a time when I can see it more clearly. I thank G-d for sustaining me through this time and helping me to get to each new day.
Posted By Anonymous, Newtown, PA

Posted: July 26, 2010
denying hope
my dream as long as i have been alive was to make aliya (move to israel). then all my family was dead and i didn't have enough records for authenticity papers. today i was choosing to give up hope on my dream. having no family, just almost lost a boyfriend, and a bad job, i didn't see the purpose of my existence. when i read this today i had but a slight hope. g-d always seems to find a way to let you know he understands. thank you for this posting.
Posted By sophia

Posted: Jan 15, 2010
Very good Topic
My belief is this man placed all his hope and trust in people and this carnal world in which we live. Anyone is destined to fail when you do this, you will be let down. It is foolishness. Place your hope in God, he can be trusted, his love is sufficient, and provides us with all our needs and purpose. He will direct us, and we will be blessed and bless others.
Posted By Erik, Miami, Fl
via jewishvirginislands.com

Posted: Mar 2, 2006
dear chabad.org,

thanks for your incredible website. there are so so many blessings and helps here. i only wish hope and pray that more and more yidden can access this site. can you make a bunch of billboards for los angeles so people will go to your site?!

put, like "chabad.org...your soul is calling"
Posted By Anonymous

Posted: Mar 2, 2006
thanks for this. we all need to be reminded that redemption/vision/salvation for us as individuals an as a people can happen in a moment.
Posted By josh



 


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